age limits/curfew - I support curfews until you're 18yo. 90% of the teens I run into after midnight are up to no good. The other 10% are coming home from work or a church function.

drug control to an extent - Total legal enforcement for all drugs except marijuana. I don't care if you smoke weed inside your house, as long as you keep it indoors and don't commit any other crimes along with it. The only reason I think marijuana should be enforced differently is that I don't run into too many people stealing to get their next "joint." Drug dealers should be dealt with harshly, no matter what they deal, because there is other crime that goes along with drug dealing.

alcohol control - The age should be lowered to 18. If you're allowed to go fight for this country, you should be allowed to have a beer. Though DUI laws should be tougher all together. I enforce them the way the department wants them enforced at the time. Every other year they tell us to hammer down on under age drinking (mostly high school parties) until some kid who's daddy is connected gets a ticket.

gun control - 2nd amendment all the way...as long as you own it legally.

jaywalking - I've never written a jaywalking ticket, yet its great PC to stop a suspicious person. I only care if someone is crossing the middle of a busy roadway during rush hour with little kids.

littering - I can't stand people that litter. It makes the area look trashy and I'll enforce it every chance I get (though I usually make them pick up their trash and throw it away).

loitering - It all depends. If you're in a lower crime area and seem to be good kids, I'll tell you guys to move along so I don't get called out there again. If I'm in a high crime area, I'll stop and investigate what you're doing little more. I've rarely made arrests strictly for loitering, though it has been included when I make a drug case as a reason for the stop.

fighting with consent of both parties - not illegal in GA (as long as its out of view from the public). Even then, if no one wants to prosecute, I'll usually let them go as long as they didn't cause a huge scene.

disorderly conduct - that's very broad in GA. I can charge someone with DC for as little as cussing in public to disobeying a police officer (usually when told to calm down and the person is still yelling and screaming at the top of their lungs).

definatly a good cop.

Quote:

Originally Posted by careyman_462

I guess that is made under the assumption that the kids are still in school, and should be at home and probably in bed. Once again, it won't usually be strictly enforced. I was "busted" for curfew once, the officer just told us to head on back to the house, and then left to check out a parked car nearby (in a closed park).

Also, generally speaking, kids that are out late have a higher rate of being up to no good. It's not true in every situation of course, but there is a higher percentage of crime per people awake at night.

of course it is in no way to protect the children.
the only time ive ever seen curfew strictly enforced was at the mall after 10pm. still a dumb law, i consider it dicrimination.

Do you have an opinion on the (seemingly) increased use of SWAT teams? If I have just been watching too many YouTube videos, feel free to call me out on it...

What is your opinion on Government surveillance? The use of security cameras in public is what I'm mostly interested in.
Should the footage be publicly available? Available with warrant? Private within government agencies?
Would you support a facial recognition/tracking system?

? It's true. If you don't believe me, then wait for one of the LEO's to respond, or go do some research... The Constitution doesn't differentiate between children and adults. I'm not gonna bother discussing it further if you're just gonna throw the facts out the window.

? It's true. If you don't believe me, then wait for one of the LEO's to respond, or go do some research... The Constitution doesn't differentiate between children and adults. I'm not gonna bother discussing it further if you're just gonna throw the facts out the window.

Your right, it leaves that up to each state's individual constitution. however, those states do establish an age of majority, where one enjoys the full rights of citizenship. until you reach that age, you are a 2nd class citizen, not worthy of your constitutional rights.

Do you have an opinion on the (seemingly) increased use of SWAT teams? If I have just been watching too many YouTube videos, feel free to call me out on it...

What is your opinion on Government surveillance? The use of security cameras in public is what I'm mostly interested in.
Should the footage be publicly available? Available with warrant? Private within government agencies?
Would you support a facial recognition/tracking system?

Thanks for your time.

I believe that SWAT is not overused, and you may in fact be watching too much YouTube. If a SWAT team appears, there is a specific reason which requires special training to deal with the situation. There are certain guidelines that must be met in order for SWAT to be called out. If you see them, they belong.

Use of government surveillance is an iffy subject. I believe it is absolutely necessary at crowded public places (malls, schools, main streets, etc.), but can at sometimes infringe on the right to privacy. These cameras are more for public safety and to reduce response time, but federal agencies have been known for using the cameras for more then they are supposed to be used for. I believe that access to these cameras should be public unless there is an investigation that requires the use of the cameras, then only available with a warrant issued from a judge.

I would support facial recognition software. In fact, they are already using them at some of the major airports around the US.

Quote:

Originally Posted by karnivorcartman

this thread delivers , i plan on becoming a law enforcement officer once im of age. but between now and then im gonna get emt certification.

will that help me get a job at a department

Quote:

Originally Posted by EY3

well see about that...

yea what should we do to get a job in law enforcement?

An EMT certification isn't necessarily going to help but may get your starting salary a little bit higher. It is always a good tool to have but not necessary. The biggest thing I can tell you about pursuing a career in law enforcement is to really sit back and think why you want to do it. Do you want to do it because of the gun and power, or do you want to help people and make society a better place? If your answer is the former, get out. Applicants go through months of background checks, psychological exams, and polygraph tests to weed out people like that. More people will hate you then like you as a police officer. Do well in school, don't do drugs (marijuana included), and ask for a ride-a-long with a local station to see if its right for you.

I'm not really sure on what the debate is about...but minors absolutely have constitutional rights. They are American citizens and ALL American citizens have rights. Minors have the rights but the parents (or legal guardians) are responsible for using them.

Just this year my high school was assigned a police officer that is to stay on campus all day (the school calls him a resource officer), and many other schools in my district have been assigned resource officers. Apunkjunkie since you're in Georgia I doubt you would have much knowledge about whats going on in Southern California high schools, so this is mostly directed to Tremor HSP. My basic question is why? What has changed over the past few years that would motivate them to assign these officers? Did the Columbine/Virginia Tech shootings have a large influence?

Also just some random questions: How many weapons do you carry in your squad car/what kinds of weapons? Recently I was in a police car (I wasn't being arrested or anything) and the officer had a shotgun and a M4 Colt. How fast can your squad cars go? Have you ever been in a chase? Have you ever fired your weapon at someone/shot someone?

Thanks.

We've always had campus police officers in my jurisdiction, mostly for fights and enforcing laws on school campuses.

Lets see. I drive a crown vic, but we also have a few camaros, impalas, a few charges, and a tahoe or two. I carry two 40 cal. glocks and have access to a shotgun (with buckshot and slugs) and less lethal shotguns (that shoot beanbag rounds), but M16s are also available with additional training and the SWAT team uses a barrage of weapons.

I've gotten a crown vic in the triple digits, though I didn't actually look at my speedometer, because when you're going that fast you usually don't have time.

No I haven't been in a chase due to my departments "no chase" policy for anything but a forcible felony (which is going to change soon because of a favorable Supreme Court ruling).

Sad but true. You have zero rights until you're 18. Parents control you at home, teachers/staff own you at school.

Wrong. You have the same constitutional rights as adults in this country, but you have tighter restrictions due to you age. In GA, you have to listen to what your parents say until you're 18. Also, your parents cannot kick you out of the house until you are 18, because they are responsible for you.

You have fewer rights within your schools in the fact that you can be searched by school administration (as well as your locker, bookbag, car, etc.) if they suspect any violation of school rules and those findings turned over to law enforcement.

Do you have an opinion on the (seemingly) increased use of SWAT teams? If I have just been watching too many YouTube videos, feel free to call me out on it...

What is your opinion on Government surveillance? The use of security cameras in public is what I'm mostly interested in.
Should the footage be publicly available? Available with warrant? Private within government agencies?
Would you support a facial recognition/tracking system?

Thanks for your time.

SWAT is a great tool and their training helps keep officers alive. There's only a slight increase, but appears to be more because of shows like "Dallas SWAT." However, society as a whole is getting more violent. Violent crime is up (7% I believe) from last year and more and more people own firearms.

Are you talking about government surveillance as in law enforcement or NSA type surveillance. Security cameras in public don't bother me because, in all honesty, its not illegal to have your photo taken or be video taped in public. That footage should be available in accordance to the "Open Records Act" as long as its not being used as evidence.

Private property surveillance should only be done with the consent of the owner or with a warrant. I'm iffy on the Patriot Act that allows warrantless wiretaps on suspected terrorists. However, I believe that if the suspected terrorist is a citizen of the US, a warrant should be obtained. However, if they aren't a US citizen, go for it.

I haven't done enough research on facial recognition software or a tracking system to give a good opinion. However, I can tell you I probably won't agree with the tracking system for anyone but sexual deviants (not just sexual offenders).

On the topic of SWAT teams, what are the general requirements for joining one, hows it all work? I've been trying to find information but am having a hard time of it. Any help would be appreciated, especially links.

Wrong. You have the same constitutional rights as adults in this country, but you have tighter restrictions due to you age. In GA, you have to listen to what your parents say until you're 18. Also, your parents cannot kick you out of the house until you are 18, because they are responsible for you.

You have fewer rights within your schools in the fact that you can be searched by school administration (as well as your locker, bookbag, car, etc.) if they suspect any violation of school rules and those findings turned over to law enforcement.

so, aren't you, and the parents violating children's constitutional rights in this way? Why are there no lawsuits?

Every citizen has the right to vote. It says THAT in the constitution. Those under the age of 18 don't have the right to vote, so how are they citizens? Or are we just routinely denying every citizen under the age of 18 what the US naturalization test calls "The most important right for Amerizan Citizens"?

It sounds to me, that if minors are citizens, their rights, constitutional and otherwise, are being heinously violated on a daily basis.